| Canadian Cross-Country Skiers Look to Build from Tough Week in Finland |
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KUUSAMO, Finland (November 29, 2009) It was one of the most challenging weeks in the team's history, but Canada's cross-country skiers are putting it behind them and moving ahead. The team struggled again on Sunday with the nation's best skiers battling to crack the top-half of the leaderboard in Kuusamo, Finland. Ivan Babikov and Sara Renner, both of Canmore, finished as the top man and woman for Canada. Babikov was 38th with a time of 36 minutes 30.8 seconds in the men's 15-kilometre classic-ski race, while Renner was 39th in the women's 10-kilometre race after crossing the line in a time of 27:51.8. "Our skis were fine and we had good equipment, it was just a really tough week for us as a team," said Dave Wood, team leader, who experienced significant flight delays with Renner and George Grey en route to Finland getting them there just in time for Saturday's competitions, not to mention the team's head coach, Inge Braten, suffering a broken hip during race preparations. "It was a brutal trip over here for us and I think we are just a little flat right now. We need to have a good training period this week and regroup." While Renner was the top Canuck in the woman's field, Olympic gold medallist, Chandra Crawford, may have been one of the bright spots for Canada on Sunday despite a 64th-place finish with a time of 29:05.3. A sprinting specialist, who has not raced in more than a year, team officials are working on her conditioning. "We need to get Chandra some harder aerobic conditioning and I think she was a positive for us today," said Wood. "It takes time but her shape is coming. Even sprinting events are aerobic and we need to build that up with her." Finland's Aino-Kaisa Saarinen finished on top of the women's pack with a time of 25:28.0. Russia's Irina Khazova was second at 26:11.1, while Vibeke Skofterud, of Norway, was third at 26:12.7. Four other Canadians joined Babikov in the men's race. George Grey, of Rossland, B.C., was 52nd (36:54.5); Devon Kershaw, of Sudbury, Ontario, was 55th (36:58.8); Alex Harvey, of St-Ferréol-les-Neiges, Quebec, was 62nd (37:06.2); and Graham Nishikawa, of Whitehorse, was 66th (37:09.9). Norway's Petter Northug Jr. won the men's race after clocking-in at 35:22.2. Russians Maxim Vylegzhanin (35:23.4) and Alexander Legkov (35:30.1) finished second and third respectively. The Canadian team will now make their way towards Dusseldorf, Germany for an individual and team sprint race next weekend. Cross Country Canada is the governing body of cross-country skiing in Canada. Its 51,000 members include athletes, coaches, officials and skiers of all ages and abilities, including those on Canada's National Ski Teams and Para-Nordic Ski Teams. Cross-country skiing is Canada's optimal winter sport and recreational activity with more than one million Canadians participating annually. Complete World Cup Results: http://www.fis-ski.com Top-5 Men and Canadian Results: 1. Petter Northug Jr., NOR, 35:22.2; 2. Maxim Vylegzhanin, RUS, 35:23.4; 3. Alexander Legkov, RUS, 35:30.1; 4. Kris Freeman, USA, 35:32.3; 5. Martin Johnsrud Sundby, NOR, 35:32.7 Canadian Results: 38. Ivan Babikov, Canmore, Alta., 36:30.8; 52. George Grey, Rossland, B.C., 36:54.5; 55. Devon Kershaw, Sudbury, Ont., 36:58.8; 62. Alex Harvey, St-Ferréol-les-Neiges, Que., 37:06.2; 66. Graham Nishikawa, Whitehorse, 37:09.9.
Canadian Results: 39. Sara Renner, Canmore, Alta., 27:51.8; 64. Chandra Crawford, Canmore, Alta., 29:05.3 |
